Over 73 per cent polling was recorded in the first phase of the Himachal Pradesh panchayat elections on Tuesday, with women voters surpassing men in all districts, officials said.Voting for the 1,293 panchayats began at 7 am and concluded peacefully at 3 pm, amid a yellow alert issued for heatwave conditions in Una, Bilaspur, Hamirpur, Kangra, Solan and Sirmaur districts.According to State Election Commission data, 73.19 per cent of voters exercised their franchise till 3 pm.The percentage may increase further as queues were seen at several polling booths past 3 pm.The data showed that 76.26 per cent of women voters turned up at polling booths, as against 70.2 per cent of men.he highest turnout of 82.44 per cent was recorded in Kullu district, followed by 78.59 per cent in Solan, 77.25 per cent in Una, 76.56 per cent in Sirmaur, 75.14 per cent in Shimla, 73.78 per cent in Mandi, 71.22 per cent in Bilaspur, 70.28 per cent in Kangra, 69.93 per cent in Hamirpur, 69.4 per cent in Lahaul and Spiti, 68.12 per cent in Chamba and 66.12 per cent in Kinnaur.”The polling was peaceful across the state. The polling for a panchayat samiti would be held again in one ward in Mandi district as the name of one of the six candidates was missing from the list,” State Chief Election Commissioner Anil Khachi told PTI.Among the women who cast their votes was 113-year-old Manglu Devi. Accompanied by her family, Manglu Devi of Bhadrog village cast her vote at a Pink Booth set up in Seu gram panchayat in Bilaspur district.She was one of the oldest women to vote in these elections.District Election Officer (Panchayat) and Deputy Commissioner, Bilaspur, Rahul Kumar, lauded Manglu Devi’s spirit, saying her participation in this “festival of democracy” will inspire other voters.